Heater unit and system



June 21, 1949. E. B. BARNES 2,473,562

HEATER UNIT AND SYSTEM Filed Sept. 17, 1945 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 III E01 INVENTOR ll'as 8.8arnes ATTORN EY June 21, E B BARNES HEATER UNIT AND SYSTEM Filed Sept. 17, 1945 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR Elias B. Bar/m;

ATTORNEY June 21, 1949.

E. B. BARNES HEATER UNIT AND SYSTEM 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Sept. 17, 19 5 INVEN TOR E/fa: 8. Burn 68 911m ATTORNEY Patented June 21, 1949 UNITED STATES- ?ATENT OFFICE HEATER UNIT AND SYSTEM" Elias B. Barnes, Elkhart, Ind.

Application September 1'7, 1945, Serial No. 616,171.

It is a further object of my invention to pro vide such a heater embodying a. fuel tank with control valve and connections demountable as a separate unit for convenience in cleaning and replacement.

A further object of my invention is to. provide for such a heating and ventilating unit. a funneling base which serves; both to funnel off any spilled fuel oiland to supply-fresh Ventilating" air to the unit.

Another object, of my invention is to provide, forced air circulation means in such a heater ventilator unit. for circulating cool fresh air around the elements to be cooled, for drawing the warm air down from, the ceiling, and projecting the heated air from the unit down toward the;

floor of the enclosure tobe; heated.

It is a further object of my invention to provide;

an improved air diffusing heater unit which, While. providing ample heat and air; exchange for ventilation, and humidity control, will also provideeffectiveair movement and'circulation for spreading. the heat and providing maximum human comfort.

It is also an object; of my invention to provide,

a simple rugged heater and ventilating unit;

which is safe, efficient and reliable in operation.

Further; objects and advantages are within the scope of the invention, such as relate to the ar rangement, operation; and function of the related elements of the structure, to various details of, construction, and to combinations of parts, elements perse, ancl to-economies of manufacture and numerous other features as will be.

apparent from a consideration of the, specification in conjunction withthe drawings disclosing specific embodiments of the invention in which Fig. 1 is a front elevational view of the heating and ventilating un t;

Fig. 2 is aplan view thereof;

Fig. 3 is a. vertical sectionalview taken; through, the unit on line. 3-3 in Fig.2;

Fig; 4 is a plan; view of thebase;

Fig. 5v is an enlargedv fragmentary View on line.

5--5v of Fig. 4.;

Fig. 6 isan elevational view of the, tank with. control and connections as a removable unit; and,

Fig; 7 is a fragmentary perspective view'taken' at, a quartering angle; for-showing how the unit. maybe enclosed in a closet having only two,open-.

ings into an; enclosure; to be heated and ventilated,

Referr n mor pe ifica ly to Else- 1 2 d of the drawings, it will beseenthat my improved la erally diff sin a rrheat ns nd; g n unit comprises an outer housing; llenclosing a, combustion chamber: I 3, of a generally similar shape and smaller dimensions, so that the walls arespaced enarts crpro d ne ad quate. air c r ulat ingspaces; The combustion chamber is preferably of a rectangular shape all horizontal sec-- tions t pro ide ample heat radiat ngrfaces.

The top'walls [3a. and, [la respectively of the:

combustionnchamberl-3;-and the enclosingins lated housing ll slopeupwardly from back. to. front, and; theouter housing is open at the front,

I to facilitate the upward and forward movement. of heated air to, be projected out from the open, front side of the housing-,as may be seen in Fig. 3. The side, back and top, walls of the outer housing, l'l arev of a double construction enclosing i sulation spaces which; are filled with any suitable insulation material; I 5,, such as rock wool, asbestos,

or the like.v

As may be seen in Fig.3, the'front wall I! of the;

combustion chamber is provided with a small aperture 19 andthis, Wallis, removable for pro-. viding convenient access to. any suitable fuel or oilburnerlm ounted therein. The aperture i9; is large enough for inserting; a. taper-or match to.

the burner and is; preferablyqcircular and closed by means of a disc 2-! of sheet metal pivotally secured on one side, by a rivet .23. passing there through. into. the removable front wall of the combustion chamber.-

An air inlet passagetii is provided, in the space .under the combustionvchamber l3 and opening,

toward the open frontv side of; the. housing for drawing, combustion air-offthe, floor to supply air to the burnerfiiin the combustion chamber, in manner to be more fully described. As maybe.

seen in Fig. 3,, a pipe connection or nipple 35opens through the lower back portion of the sloping topwall of the combustion chamber fordischarging the products of V combustion therefrom. The:

upper end of the pine; nipple 35 passes through. an opening in the sloping, insulated top, wall I la:

of the insulated housing and it is crimped to re duce the diameter and provide for conveniently receiving and snugly fitting the lower end of any suitable stack pipe 3'! which may be inserted down thereonto, as shown in Fig. 3, for discharging the products of combustion externally to the enclosure to be heated. From this opening in the upper wall lid of the housing a short sleeve 4| of larger diameter extends upwardly in spaced relation around the stack 31. An aperture 83 is provided in the side of the sleeve ll to permit air flow out from the sleeve to the blower. A baffle plate 455 is provided attached to the upper wall ltd of the combustion chamber near the front, as by spot welding, and sloping down toward the back for causing the products of combustion to circulate around and transmit heat to the side walls before passing up the smoke pipe Bl.

An oil tank ll is mounted on the rear end of the sloping top wall of the enclosing housing from whence pipes 49 and 56 pass down to the oil burner 3 through any suitable valve (a well known constant level float valve is shown) controlled by a handle 53 through a long rod 55, which passes up through a pipe 55a, soldered in the top and bottom wall of the tank. A screw cap 56 on the top wall of the tank provides convenient access for filling with fuel oil. As the oil tank is substantially above the burner, the rate of fuel flow does not vary substantially as the oil level varies from full tank to empty tank level, and a fairly accurate calibration is obtained by noting the position of the valve for the desired heat capacity under various conditions of weather and climate. The lower part of pipe 19 forms a sediment sump below the tank. The front part of the bottom wall of the tank is suitably sloped and provided with spacers to rest upon the rear end of the sloping top wall of the insulated housing, as may be seen in Fig. 3. The fixture depending from the tank is detachably connected through a connector 58 to the pipe 59 which extends to the burner. The outer cabinet 68 is sufiiciently large to provide ample tank space at the rear. By disconnecting the connector 58, the tank may be conveniently removed with the control valve and sediment pipe for cleaning and adjusting as a unit, as shown in Fig. 6. A spillway 6| is provided on the tank extending from around the filler spout down along one side of the tank to discharge spilled oil at a point below the tank from which it is disposed of in a manner to be subsequently described.

Vanes or fins E52, represented by dotted lines, may be secured firmly in close thermal contact on the side walls of the combustion chamber and projecting laterally and vertically guide the rising air currents and improve heat transfer.

In accordance with my invention, I provide a blower unit comp-rising an electric motor 63 and a sirocco type blower 64 mounted in a space enclosed by the outer cabinet 60 above the insulated top wall of the housing. For silent operation, the motorized blower unit is suspended by a piece of non-metallic asbestos board 65 to a diagonally disposed rod extending over the heater.

Connecting from the outlet port of the scroll casing of the blower, I provide an air conducting conduit or discharge nozzle H which diverges horizontally across th front side of the housing. To flexibly connect the blower to the discharge nozzle, a flexible sheet material 73, such as rubber, leather, canvas or the like, is wrapped around the adjacently disposed ends thereof and secured to the blower by a clamping band and to the 4 discharge nozzle in any suitable manner, as by rivets or screws ll.

While the discharge nozzle H is widely divergent laterally toward the front of the unit and to form a horizontally elongated air discharge slot '59, as may be seen in Fig. 2, it converges vertically, as may be seen in Fig. 3. The shape and position of the blower discharge nozzle H is such that it discharges a sheet of air which is thin vertically and broad horizontally and which is directed forwardly and downwardly over the open front of the housing from whence the hot air is delivered. The intake port 8| of the blower casing 69 draws in warm air from the space above the housing and around the smoke stack 81. The large sleeve l! around the stack is preferably provided with a large aperture 83 adjacent the intake port of the blower to which it is still more closely coupled when rock wool 83' is packed into the space in such a manner as to restrict air flow and leave a channel between the sleeve and the blower, and the cabinet 66 is closed by the cover installed with the edges snugly seated in the channels 84 formed by the rear and side upper edges. A substantial portion of intake air is drawn from around the smoke pipe 31 and also heated air is drawn from the ceiling for more effective distribution while utilizing a portion of the heat in the combustion gases which would otherwise be discharged outside and wasted. Also a portion of the intake air is cool fresh air drawn up the back of the housing under the fuel tank and around the motor so that these are not heated by heat from the combustion chamber.

As shown in Fig. 3, the bottom wall |3d of the combustion chamber l3 rests upon sheet metal channel strips 81 secured to the bottom wall of the chamber in spaced apart relation, as by spot welding for example.

A floor air inlet passage 33 is formed between the spacer strips 81 and extends from the open front of the housing back under the combustion chamber It a, suitable distance for conducting air off of the floor of the room into an aperture 9| in the bottom wall of the combustion chamber through which it passes upwardly around the burner to support combustion in the combustion chamber. Any suitable burner may be utilized. As shown in Fig. 3 the burner may be a conventional pot type oil burner having a bowl shaped oil receptacle 93 with the lower end of the oil line 59 passing into the rear side thereof. Bracket arms 9? of strap iron are secured, as by Welding, between the bottom of the oil bowl 93 and the bottom side of the bottom wall |3d of the combustion chamber, for mounting the bowl in a concentric position in the air inlet aperture 9| so that air drawn off the floor of the heated enclosure may rise freely on all sides. A perforated cylindrical sheet metal flame baflle 99, open at both ends, is fitted snugly down into the oil bowl. The burner is a cylindrical sheet metal enclosure |fl| open at the bottom end and fitting down on the floor |3d of the chamber around the outside of a marginal flange I03 turned up around the inlet apertur 9|. The upper end of the enclosure member |0| is partially closed by a cast ring I05 secured thereto, as by brazing for example, and having a central aperture I09 through which the flame passes from the burner.

' The side walls of the outer cabinet extend back and support a second or outside back wall ||f spaced back of the insulated back wall H and I providing an air space I through which a portion of the fresh outside air rises, passing forward 7, tending up through the ceiling above the heater in the closet, there are no visible elements of the heating apparatus except the two openings in the front wall of the closet and these may be covered by any ornamental grills as desired.

It is apparent that within the scope of the invention, modifications and diiferent arrangements may be made other than herein disclosed, and the present disclosure is illustrative merely, the invention comprehending variations thereof. A divisional application Serial No. 60,851 was filed in the Patent Office November 19, 1948.

I claim:

1. In a laterally diffusing air changer and heater, wall means forming 'a combustion chamber of a rectangular shape in all horizontal crosssections, said combustion chamber having its top wall sloping upwardly from back to front, wall means forming an insulating housing of a similar shape but having larger dimensions than the chamber and disposed in enclosing spaced relation around said chamber, said housing having an air projecting port in the front, the bottom wall of said housing having a ventilating aperture for admitting fresh air to rise in the space around said chamber for receiving heat prior to projection from the open front port of the housing, a fuel burner mounted in said combustion chamber, means enclosing a space above said housing, the bottom wall of said combustion chamber having an air inlet aperture, a floor air inlet conduit connecting from said air inlet aperture through the space under the combustion chamber and opening toward the front of the housing for drawing air off of the floor of an enclosure to be heated, a stack connection opening through the top wall of the insulating housing from the combustion chamber for discharging combustion gases, a sleeve around said stack, said sleeve being larger in diameter and having an aperture in one side, a blower and motor mounted in the space above the housing with the blower intake port spaced slightly from said aperture in the sleeve for drawing air from the space above said housing, an air flow restricting cover fitting over said housing around said stack and sleeve for enclosing said space to cause inflowing air to flow from said sleeve to said blower while the loosely coupled relation between the blower and the sleeve aperture causes a portion of cool fresh air to flow around said motor, conduit means connecting from the discharge side of said blower, a nozzle connected to said air conduit means, deflector means adjacent said nozzle, and said nozzle and deflector means being suitably shaped and positioned above the open side of said housing for projecting a sheet of air so as to deflect the heated air laterally and downwardly.

2. A laterally diffusing air heater and changer comprising, wall means forming a combustion chamber having its top wall sloping upwardly from back to front, wall means forming an insulating housing of a similar shape but having larger dimensions than the chamber and disposed in enclosing spaced relation around said chamber, said housing having an air projectin port in the front, the bottom wall of said housin havin a ventilating aperture for admitting fresh air to rise in the space around said chamber for receiving heat prior to projection from the open front port of the housing, an oil burner mounted in said combustion chamber, an oil fuel tank mounted on the rear end of the top wall of the housing to supply said burner, the bottom wall of said combustion chamber having an air inlet aperture, a floor air inlet conduit connecting from said air inlet aperture through the space under the combustion chamber and opening toward the front of the housing for drawing air off of the fioor of an enclosure to be heated, a stack connection opening from the combustion chamber through the top wall of the housing for discharging combustion gases, a sleeve of larger diameter spaced around said stack and having an aperture in one side, a blower and motor mounted in the space above the housing with the blower intake port spaced slightly from the sleeve aperture for drawing air from the space above said housing, whereby air flowing into the blower is partly warm air from said sleeve and partly cold fresh air flowing around said tank and said motor, conduit means connecting from the discharge side of said blower, a nozzle connected to said air conduit means, deflector means adjacent said nozzle, and said nozzle and deflector means being suitably shaped and positioned above the open side of said housing for projecting a sheet of air so as to deflect the heated air laterally and downwardly.

3. In a heating and ventilating arrangement the combination of, a ceiling, a floor, wall means cooperative with said ceiling and floor for enclosing a space to be heated, a combustion heater in said space, a stack extending from the heater through said ceiling for discharging combustion gases externally of the space to be heated, a heat collector sleeve spaced around and along said stack and opening adjacent the ceiling, a blower disposed with its intake adjacent the lower portion of said sleeve for drawing heated air from around the stack and adjacent the ceiling, and air projecting means so disposed relative to the discharge of said blower as to project the air toward the floor.

4. A heating and ventilating arrangement in accordance with claim 3 and further characterized by said heater being conformed for delivering heated air toward one side, and the air projectlng means being conformed and disposed for projecting a sheet of air above the hot air delivery side of the heater so that all the heated air is projected downwardly toward the floor.

ELIAS B. BARNES.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 87,846 Himrod Mar. 16, 1869 436,240 Hulett Sept. 9, 1890 2,216,018 Meyer Sept. 24, 1940 2,225,203 Barnes Dec. 17, 1940 2,229,277 Clements Jan. 21, 1941 2,243,916 Mueller June 3, 1941 

